Customized user-controlled media overlays

ABSTRACT

Among other things, embodiments of the present disclosure improve the functionality of electronic messaging and imaging software and systems by enabling users to generate customized media overlays that can be shared with other users. For example, media overlays can be generated by the system and displayed in conjunction with media content (e.g., images and/or video) generated by an image-capturing device (e.g., a digital camera). In some embodiments, existing media overlays may be used by users to create derivative media overlays. The system may track usage of media overlays and any derivatives created based thereon, and allow users to control the distribution and use of their overlays in future derivatives. In some embodiments, for example, a user can modify an overlay they created and cause the modification to propagate to all derivative overlays based on the user&#39;s overlay.

BACKGROUND

The popularity of electronic messaging, particularly instant messaging, continues to grow. Users increasingly share media content items such as electronic images and videos with each other, reflecting a global demand to communicate more visually. Similarly, users increasingly seek to customize the media content items they share with others, providing challenges to social networking systems seeking to enable users to generate and edit custom media content. Embodiments of the present disclosure address these and other issues.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, like numerals may describe similar components in different views. Like numerals having different letter suffixes may represent different instances of similar components. Some embodiments are illustrated by way of example, and not limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example messaging system for exchanging data (e.g., messages and associated content) over a network.

FIG. 2 is block diagram illustrating further details regarding a messaging system, according to exemplary embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating data which may be stored in the database of the messaging server system, according to various exemplary embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of an exemplary process according to various aspects of the disclosure.

FIGS. 5A-5B are screenshots illustrating the steps of the method described in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a representative software architecture, which may be used in conjunction with various hardware architectures herein described.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating components of a machine, according to some exemplary embodiments, able to read instructions from a machine-readable medium (e.g., a machine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The description that follows includes systems, methods, techniques, instruction sequences, and computing machine program products that embody illustrative embodiments of the disclosure. In the following description, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide an understanding of various embodiments of the inventive subject matter. It will be evident, however, to those skilled in the art, that embodiments of the inventive subject matter may be practiced without these specific details. In general, well-known instruction instances, protocols, structures, and techniques are not necessarily shown in detail.

Among other things, embodiments of the present disclosure improve the functionality of electronic messaging and imaging software and systems by enabling users to generate customized media overlays that can be shared with other users. For example, media overlays can be generated by the system and displayed in conjunction with media content (e.g., images and/or video) generated by an image-capturing device (e.g., a digital camera). Media content and overlays applied thereto can be also be transmitted to other users via electronic communications, such as SMS or MMS texts and emails. In some embodiments, media overlays may be presented to a user in a gallery or carousel to be selected and applied to media content by the user.

In some embodiments, existing media overlays may be used by users to create derivative media overlays. The system may track usage of media overlays and any derivatives created based thereon, and allow users to control the distribution and use of their overlays in future derivatives. In some embodiments, for example, a user can modify an overlay they created and cause the modification to propagate to all derivative overlays based on the user's overlay. In some embodiments, a user can delete an overlay they created and cause any derivative overlays based on the user's overlay to be deleted as well.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a messaging system 100 for exchanging data (e.g., messages and associated content) over a network. The messaging system 100 includes multiple client devices 102, each of which hosts a number of applications including a messaging client application 104. Each messaging client application 104 is communicatively coupled to other instances of the messaging client application 104 and a messaging server system 108 via a network 106 (e.g., the Internet). As used herein, the term “client device” may refer to any machine that interfaces to a communications network (such as network 106) to obtain resources from one or more server systems or other client devices. A client device may be, but is not limited to, a mobile phone, desktop computer, laptop, portable digital assistants (PDAs), smart phones, tablets, ultra books, netbooks, laptops, multi-processor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, game consoles, set-top boxes, or any other communication device that a user may use to access a network.

In the example shown in FIG. 1, each messaging client application 104 is able to communicate and exchange data with another messaging client application 104 and with the messaging server system 108 via the network 106. The data exchanged between messaging client applications 104, and between a messaging client application 104 and the messaging server system 108, includes functions (e.g., commands to invoke functions) as well as payload data (e.g., text, audio, video or other multimedia data).

The network 106 may include, or operate in conjunction with, an ad hoc network, an intranet, an extranet, a virtual private network (VPN), a local area network (LAN), a wireless LAN (WLAN), a wide area network (WAN), a wireless WAN (WWAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), the Internet, a portion of the Internet, a portion of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), a plain old telephone service (POTS) network, a cellular telephone network, a wireless network, a Wi-Fi® network, another type of network, or a combination of two or more such networks. For example, a network or a portion of a network may include a wireless or cellular network and the coupling may be a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) connection, a Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) connection, or other type of cellular or wireless coupling. In this example, the coupling may implement any of a variety of types of data transfer technology, such as Single Carrier Radio Transmission Technology (1×RTT), Evolution-Data Optimized (EVDO) technology, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) technology, Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE) technology, third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) including 3G, fourth generation wireless (4G) networks, Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard, others defined by various standard setting organizations, other long range protocols, or other data transfer technology.

The messaging server system 108 provides server-side functionality via the network 106 to a particular messaging client application 104. While certain functions of the messaging system 100 are described herein as being performed by either a messaging client application 104 or by the messaging server system 108, it will be appreciated that the location of certain functionality either within the messaging client application 104 or the messaging server system 108 is a design choice. For example, it may be technically preferable to initially deploy certain technology and functionality within the messaging server system 108, but to later migrate this technology and functionality to the messaging client application 104 where a client device 102 has a sufficient processing capacity.

The messaging server system 108 supports various services and operations that are provided to the messaging client application 104. Such operations include transmitting data to, receiving data from, and processing data generated by the messaging client application 104. This data may include, message content, client device information, geolocation information, media annotation and overlays, message content persistence conditions, social network information, and live event information, as examples. Data exchanges within the messaging system 100 are invoked and controlled through functions available via user interfaces (UIs) of the messaging client application 104.

Turning now specifically to the messaging server system 108, an Application Program interface (API) server 110 is coupled to, and provides a programmatic interface to, an application server 112. The application server 112 is communicatively coupled to a database server 118, which facilitates access to a database 120 in which is stored data associated with messages processed by the application server 112.

Dealing specifically with the Application Program Interface (API) server 110, this server receives and transmits message data (e.g., commands and message payloads) between the client device 102 and the application server 112. Specifically, the Application Program interface (API) server 110 provides a set of interfaces (e.g., routines and protocols) that can be called or queried by the messaging client application 104 in order to invoke functionality of the application server 112. The Application Program Interface (API) server 110 exposes various functions supported by the application server 112, including account registration, login functionality, the sending of messages, via the application server 112, from a particular messaging client application 104 to another messaging client application 104, the sending of electronic media files (e.g., electronic images and/or video) from a messaging client application 104 to the messaging server application 114, and for possible access by another messaging client application 104, the setting of a collection of media data (e.g., story), the retrieval of a list of friends of a user of a client device 102, the retrieval of such collections, the retrieval of messages and content, the adding and deletion of friends to a social graph, the location of friends within a social graph, opening and application event (e.g., relating to the messaging client application 104).

The application server 112 hosts a number of applications and subsystems, including a messaging server application 114, an image processing system 116 and a social network system 122. The messaging server application 114 implements a number of message processing technologies and functions, particularly related to the aggregation and other processing of content (e.g., textual and multimedia content including images and video clips) included in messages received from multiple instances of the messaging client application 104. As will be described in further detail, the text and media content from multiple sources may be aggregated into collections of content (e.g., called stories or galleries). These collections are then made available, by the messaging server application 114, to the messaging client application 104. Other processor and memory intensive processing of data may also be performed server-side by the messaging server application 114, in view of the hardware requirements for such processing.

The application server 112 also includes an image processing system 116 that is dedicated to performing various image processing operations, typically with respect to electronic images and/or video received within the payload of a message at the messaging server application 114.

The social network system 122 supports various social networking functions services, and makes these functions and services available to the messaging server application 114. To this end, the social network system 122 maintains and accesses an entity graph 304 within the database 120. Examples of functions and services supported by the social network system 122 include the identification of other users of the messaging system 100 with which a particular user has relationships or is “following”, and also the identification of other entities and interests of a particular user.

The application server 112 is communicatively coupled to a database server 118, which facilitates access to a database 120 in which is stored data associated with messages processed by the messaging server application 114.

Some embodiments may include one or more wearable devices, such as a pendant with an integrated camera that is integrated with, in communication with, or coupled to, a client device 102. Any desired wearable device may be used in conjunction with the embodiments of the present disclosure, such as a watch, eyeglasses, goggles, a headset, a wristband, earbuds, clothing (such as a hat or jacket with integrated electronics), a clip-on electronic device, and/or any other wearable devices.

FIG. 2 is block diagram illustrating further details regarding the messaging system 100, according to exemplary embodiments. Specifically, the messaging system 100 is shown to comprise the messaging client application 104 and the application server 112, which in turn embody a number of some subsystems, namely an ephemeral timer system 202, a collection management system 204 and an annotation system 206.

The ephemeral timer system 202 is responsible for enforcing the temporary access to content permitted by the messaging client application 104 and the messaging server application 114. To this end, the ephemeral timer system 202 incorporates a number of timers that, based on duration and display parameters associated with a message, or collection of messages (e.g., a SNAPCHAT story), selectively display and enable access to messages and associated content via the messaging client application 104.

The collection management system 204 is responsible for managing collections of media (e.g., collections of text, image video and audio data). In some examples, a collection of content (e.g., messages, including images, video, text and audio) may be organized into an “event gallery” or an “event story.” Such a collection may be made available for a specified time period, such as the duration of an event to which the content relates. For example, content relating to a music concert may be made available as a “story” for the duration of that music concert. The collection management system 204 may also be responsible for publishing an icon that provides notification of the existence of a particular collection to the user interface of the messaging client application 104.

The collection management system 204 furthermore includes a curation interface 208 that allows a collection manager to manage and curate a particular collection of content. For example, the curation interface 208 enables an event organizer to curate a collection of content relating to a specific event (e.g., delete inappropriate content or redundant messages). Additionally, the collection management system 204 employs machine vision (or image recognition technology) and content rules to automatically curate a content collection. In certain embodiments, compensation may be paid to a user for inclusion of user generated content into a collection. In such cases, the curation interface 208 operates to automatically make payments to such users for the use of their content.

The annotation system 206 provides various functions that enable a user to annotate or otherwise modify or edit media content associated with a message. For example, the annotation system 206 provides functions related to the generation and publishing of media overlays for messages processed by the messaging system 100. The annotation system 206 operatively supplies a media overlay (e.g., a SNAPCHAT filter) to the messaging client application 104 based on a geolocation of the client device 102. In another example, the annotation system 206 operatively supplies a media overlay to the messaging client application 104 based on other information, such as, social network information of the user of the client device 102. A media overlay may include audio and visual content and visual effects. Examples of audio and visual content include pictures, texts, logos, animations, and sound effects. An example of a visual effect includes color overlaying. The audio and visual content or the visual effects can be applied to a media content item (e.g., an image or video) at the client device 102. For example, the media overlay including text that can be overlaid on top of a photograph/electronic image generated by the client device 102. In another example, the media overlay includes an identification of a location overlay (e.g., Venice beach), a name of a live event, or a name of a merchant overlay (e.g., Beach Coffee House). In another example, the annotation system 206 uses the geolocation of the client device 102 to identify a media overlay that includes the name of a merchant at the geolocation of the client device 102. The media overlay may include other indicia associated with the merchant. The media overlays may be stored in the database 120 and accessed through the database server 118.

In some exemplary embodiments, as discussed in more detail below, embodiments of the present disclosure may generate, display, distribute, and apply media overlays to media content items. For example, embodiments may utilize media content items generated by a client device 102 (e.g., an image or video captured using a digital camera coupled to the client device 102) to generate media overlays that can be applied to other media content items.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram 300 illustrating data 300 that is stored in the database 120 of the messaging server system 108, according to certain exemplary embodiments. While the content of the database 120 is shown to comprise a number of tables, the data could be stored in other types of data structures (e.g., as an object-oriented database).

The database 120 includes message data stored within a message table 314. The entity table 302 stores entity data, including an entity graph 304. Entities for which records are maintained within the entity table 302 may include individuals, corporate entities, organizations, objects, places, events etc. Regardless of type, any entity regarding which the messaging server system 108 stores data may be a recognized entity. Each entity is provided with a unique identifier, as well as an entity type identifier (not shown).

The entity graph 304 furthermore stores information regarding relationships and associations between entities. Such relationships may be social, professional (e.g., work at a common corporation or organization) interested-based or activity-based, merely for example.

The database 120 also stores annotation data, in the example form of filters, in an annotation table 312. Filters for which data is stored within the annotation table 312 are associated with and applied to videos (for which data is stored in a video table 310) and/or images (for which data is stored in an image table 308). Filters, in one example, are overlays that are displayed as overlaid on an image or video during presentation to a recipient user. Filters may be of varies types, including a user-selected filters from a gallery of filters presented to a sending user by the messaging client application 104 when the sending user is composing a message.

Other types of filters include geolocation filters (also known as Geofilters) which may be presented to a sending user based on geographic location. For example, geolocation filters specific to a neighborhood or special location may be presented within a user interface by the messaging client application 104, based on geolocation information determined by a GPS unit of the client device 102. Another type of filter is a data filter, which may be selectively presented to a sending user by the messaging client application 104, based on other inputs or information gathered by the client device 102 during the message creation process. Example of data filters include current temperature at a specific location, a current speed at which a sending user is traveling, battery life for a client device 102 or the current time. Other annotation data that may be stored within the image table 308 is so-called “Lens” data. A “Lens” may be a real-time special effect and sound that may be added to an image or a video.

As mentioned above, the video table 310 stores video data which, in one embodiment, is associated with messages for which records are maintained within the message table 314. Similarly, the image table 308 stores image data associated with messages for which message data is stored in the entity table 302. The entity table 302 may associate various annotations from the annotation table 312 with various images and videos stored in the image table 308 and the video table 310.

A story table 306 stores data regarding collections of messages and associated image, video or audio data, which are compiled into a collection (e.g., a SNAPCHAT story or a gallery). The creation of a particular collection may be initiated by a particular user (e.g., each user for which a record is maintained in the entity table 302). A user may create a “personal story” in the form of a collection of content that has been created and sent/broadcast by that user. To this end, the user interface of the messaging client application 104 may include an icon that is user selectable to enable a sending user to add specific content to his or her personal story.

A collection may also constitute a “live story,” which is a collection of content from multiple users that is created manually, automatically or using a combination of manual and automatic techniques. For example, a “live story” may constitute a curated stream of user-submitted content from varies locations and events. Users, whose client devices have location services enabled and are at a common location event at a particular time may, for example, be presented with an option, via a user interface of the messaging client application 104, to contribute content to a particular live story. The live story may be identified to the user by the messaging client application 104, based on his or her location. The end result is a “live story” told from a community perspective.

A further type of content collection is known as a “location story,” which enables a user whose client device 102 is located within a specific geographic location (e.g., on a college or university campus) to contribute to a particular collection. In some embodiments, a contribution to a location story may require a second degree of authentication to verify that the end user belongs to a specific organization or other entity (e.g., is a student on the university campus).

Embodiments of the present disclosure may generate and present customized images for use within electronic messages/communications such as short message service (SMS) or multimedia message service (MMS) texts and entails. The customized images may also be utilized in conjunction with the SNAPCHAT stories, SNAPCHAT filters, and ephemeral messaging functionality discussed herein.

FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary process according to various aspects of the present disclosure. In this example, method 400 includes displaying media content on the display screen of a computing device (405), receiving selection of an object in the media content from a user (410), generating a media overlay based on the selected object (415), and transmitting the media overlay (420). Method 400 further includes receiving input from the user for controlling usage of the media overlay (425), transmitting control instructions (430), receiving a uniform resource locator (URL) link to the overlay (435), receiving input from a user for sharing the URL (440), and transmitting the URL (445). Method 400 also includes receiving a media content item with one or more overlays applied (450), retrieving one or more of the applied overlays from the media content item (455), applying one or more media overlays to a media content item (460), and receiving (465) and displaying (470) usage information regarding a media overlay. The steps of method 400 and 420 may be performed in whole or in part, may be performed in conjunction each other as well as with some or all of the steps in other methods, and may be performed by any number of different systems, such as the systems described in FIGS. 1 and 7.

A variety of media content items may be used and displayed (405) in conjunction with embodiments of the present disclosure. In this context, a “media content item” may include any type of electronic media in any format. For example, a media content item may include an image in NG format, an image in PNG format, a video in FLV format, a video in AVI format, etc. In some exemplary embodiments, a media content item is captured using an image capture device or component (such as a digital camera) coupled to, or in communication with, a system performing the functionality of method 400. In the exemplary system 700 depicted in FIG. 7 may include a digital camera as one of input components 728. Additionally or alternatively, the media content item may be received from another system or device. In FIG. 1, for example, a client device 102 performing the functionality of method 400 may receive a media content item from another client device 102 or other system via network 106. FIG. 5A illustrates an exemplary screenshot of an image 500 of a cup of coffee; 510, along with a menu bar 520 for selecting objects (410) within the image.

In this example, referring now to FIG. 5B, the system receives the selection of an object (410) within an image or other media content item displayed on the screen. In one exemplary embodiment, the user presses and holds the user's finger on the display screen of the user's device to draw a cutout of an object displayed on the display screen, such as the coffee cup 510. The user releasing his/her finger from the display screen initiates a software process to identify the object within the cutout and then display the object on the display screen. In FIG. 5B, for example, the user has drawn a cutout around the coffee cup 510, and the system identifies the object and displays the coffee cup object 560 superimposed on the original image. The user may use the menu bar 520 to perform various operations on the object, such as resizing, rotating, moving, annotating, and performing other modifications to the object iii conjunction with generating (415) a media overlay such as a “sticker” (i.e., an image that can be overlaid onto other images), filter, or another media overlay.

Embodiments of the present disclosure may allow a user to select objects from a variety of different media content items. For example, where the media content item is a video, the system may freeze the video to allow the user to select an object in a single frame from the video.

The system generates a media overlay (415) based on the selected object. The overlay may include static (i.e., non-moving) features as well as dynamic (i.e., moving) features. In some embodiments, generation of the overlay (415) may change the format or other characteristics of the selected object. For example, where the media content item is in a static image format such a JPG, and where the media overlay includes a dynamic component, the system may generate the media overlay as an animated GIF to incorporate the dynamic component in the media overlay.

Generation of the media overlay (415) may include the generation of one or more data structure fields containing information regarding the overlay. For example, the system may generate a name field in a data structure for the media overlay that includes a name for the media overlay received from an input device of a user interface from a user generating the overlay. In some embodiments, a user may be allowed to rename an overlay prior to transmitting (420) the overlay (e.g., to a server to be distributed/provided to other users) but prevented from modifying the name of the overlay (or other features of the overlay) once the overlay is transmitted. Similarly, the system may enforce unique names or identifiers for the overlays. Among other things, these features can help to prevent confusion among users after a media overlay obtains popularity and prevent unauthorized knock-offs of popular media overlays.

The system may allow the user to modify setting, colors, text, objects, other features displayed within the generated media overlay. Among other things, this allows embodiments of the present disclosure to use some standard template features in a media overlay (and thus do not need to recreate each media overlay from scratch) while also allowing the system to customize media overlays to provide a unique graphical experience to each user. The system may also allow the user to select, edit, and reformat text from an image. In some embodiments, the system may identify and apply effects and overlays (e.g., a color filter) to the generated overlay.

Embodiments of the present disclosure can also generate a media overlay (415) based on information retrieved/received from one or more sensors coupled to, or in communication with, the system, such as any of the sensor components 730, 734, 736, 738 in system 700 depicted in FIG. 7. Accordingly, the media overlay may thus be generated based on data from a location sensor, temperature sensor, velocity sensor, acceleration sensor, altitude sensor, and any other sensor information. In one exemplary embodiment, the generation of the media overlay by the system includes creating a geolocation field in a data structure for the media overlay that the system fills with location information received from a location sensor. The location information may, for example, indicate the location of the computing device on which the media overlay is created, thus allowing other users to search for user-generated overlays based on the location (e.g., country, state, region, etc.) of the users that created them. The location information (or information from other sensors) may be anonymized or redacted to provide useful information to users searching for the media overlay while preserving the privacy of the user creating the overlay.

In some embodiments, the system can also analyze the content of an overlay to help automatically identify characteristics and features of the overlay, and include such information in data structure fields for the overlay. For example, referring to the coffee cup object 560 in FIG. 5B, the system may perform (via software on the user's device or the server) image identification analysis on the overlay to identify the coffee cup and to fill one or more fields with “coffee cup,” “dishes,” or other identifying tags that will help users to find the overlay in a search. The system may thus automatically classify user-generated media overlays even when the user does not enter such classification information.

Embodiments of the present disclosure may generate any desired content in conjunction with generating (406) the media overlay, including images, video, text, visual effects, etc. In some embodiments, the generation of text and other content may be generated based on identifying a location for the system (e.g., based on location information from a location sensor coupled to the system), identifying a language associated with the system's location, and generating text for the media overlay in the identified language.

The system may transmit (420) the generated media overlay to any number of other systems. For example, media overlays may be transmitted to another device (e.g., by client device 102 to application server 112 or another client device 102 over a network such as the Internet in FIG. 1). In some embodiments, the server may collect media overlays submitted from different users and provide users access to the submitted overlays (e.g., via an Internet web page, displaying the overlays in a carousel/gallery on a user's device, etc.) to allow the user to view and apply such overlays to their own images and other media content items. The system may also receive input from a user generating an overlay for controlling the use of the overlay (425) and generate and transmit control instructions (430) based on such input to another system, such as the server hosting the overlay or to another device directly receiving the overlay from the originating user's device.

Embodiments of the present disclosure may transmit (420) and receive (459) electronic communications containing media content items, media overlays, or both using any form of electronic communication, such as SMS texts, MMS texts, emails, and other communications. Media content items included in such communications may be provided as attachments, displayed inline in the message, within media overlays, or conveyed in any other suitable manner.

The system receives (425) input from a user creating an overlay for controlling the usage of the overlay. Users may control the usage of the overlays they create in a variety of ways, such as by controlling the distribution of an overlay. For example, a user may input instructions via the input device of the user's computing device to define a whitelist of users, computing devices, or both, that the media overlay may be distributed to. Likewise, a user may input a blacklist of users, computing devices, or both, that the media overlay may not be distributed to. The user may also define various geographical boundaries within which the media overlay may or may not be distributed to. For example, the user may allow distribution of a media overlay the user creates anywhere within the United States, but prevent distribution of the media overlay outside the United States.

The user may also control the duration that a media overlay is made available. For example, the user may specify that a media overlay be made available to other users for a limited time, and made inaccessible afterwards.

The system may analyze the user's input regarding usage control or a media overlay and generate control instructions for a server hosting the media overlay to other users, or for other client computing devices to which the user distributes the media overlay. In other embodiments, the user's input may constitute the control instructions. The control instructions are then transmitted (430) to the appropriate computing devices (e.g., over a network such as the Internet) to control the usage of the media overlay by other users.

In the exemplary method 400 in FIG. 4, the system receives a uniform resource locator (URL) linked to the overlay (435). For example, where the overlay is created on a user's client device (e.g., client device 102 in FIG. 1) the user may transmit (420) the media overlay to a server (such as messaging server 108 in FIG. 1) and the server may, in turn, host the overlay for the user (and others) to access via a URL transmitted to the user's computing device over the Internet or another network. The system can receive input from the user for sharing the URL (440) with the computing devices of one or more other users and, in response to such input, transmit the URL (445) to the other computing devices, such as via an electronic communication transmitted over the Internet.

In some embodiments, the system may limit access to the media overlay based on, for example, input from the user for controlling the usage of the overlay (425). In one exemplary embodiment, the system includes a token in the electronic communication in which the URL is transmitted to another computing device that limits access to the URL by the receiving device only. The token prevents access to the URL by other computing devices, thus preventing unwanted distribution of the media overlay beyond a selected set of users. Accordingly, the system can restrict access to the media overlay even if a recipient of the URL forwards the URL to an unauthorized user/device. In other embodiments, by contrast, the URL may be accessed by any number of other computing devices, even those not originally sent the URL (thus allowing redistribution). In this manner, the system can help provide a flexible level of access to user-generated media overlays.

In addition to generating media overlays from objects within media content items, embodiments of the present disclosure may be adapted to retrieve media overlays applied to images and other media content items for later use by users. In some embodiments, for example, a computing device can receive (450) a media content item having one or more media overlays applied to the media content item. The device displays the media content item on the display screen of the computing device and visually identifies one or more of the media overlays applied to the media content item. In response to input from the user selecting one or more of the media overlays, the system retrieves (455) the selected overlays and stores them (e.g., in the computing device memory for display in a gallery/carousel as discussed below) for later use by the user.

In some embodiments where multiple overlays are applied to a media content item, the system may allow only a subset of the total number of applied overlays to be retrieved, thus helping preserve the uniqueness of, or access to, various media overlays. In one exemplary embodiment, a media content item having a plurality of media overlays applied to it is received (450) by the system and the system retrieves (455) (or allows the user to select for retrieval) up to a predetermined number of overlays from the media content item. The predetermined number of overlays may be selected at random, based on an order they were applied, or based on other criteria.

Accordingly, embodiments of the present disclosure can present the user with a plurality of media overlays on the display screen of a computing device to choose from. This display can be in the form of a list, gallery, carousel, or other construct. The media overlays may be displayed in conjunction with a variety of information about each media overlay. For example, the system may display a name associated with the media overlay, a name (or other identifier) associated with the user that created the media overlay, date information, size information, or combinations thereof.

Based on selection of one or more of these overlays by the user, the system applies (460) the one or more selected overlays to a media content item. The user may also add, remove, and modify media overlays displayed in conjunction with a media content item before applying the media overlay(s) to the content item.

Embodiments of the disclosure may generate an event story or event gallery based on a collection or series of electronic communications (e.g., containing media content items with media overlays applied) between users and provide temporary access to the event story or gallery. Any collection of such communications may be selected based on any criteria, and one or more users may be granted access to an event story or gallery for any desired predetermined period of time. Likewise, the system may grant access to the media overlays generated by a user for a predetermined period of time as described above.

Embodiments of the present disclosure allow the system to receive (465) and display (470) usage information regarding overlays created by a user. This not only allows the user to see the popularity of his/her overlays, but also the manner in which they are being distributed and used. For example, a server (e.g., messaging server system 108 in FIG. 1) may monitor downloads of media overlays, track derivative overlays created based thereon, and generate reports to transmit to the user who created the overlay (e.g., a user of a client device 102 in FIG. 1) and display on the user's computing device.

A variety of information the usage of media overlays may be collected and transmitted to a user, such as the number of views a media overlay has had by other users, the number of times the user's media overlay has been applied to media content items, and other information. In some embodiments, users may take an existing media overlay and modify (e.g., add content to, remove content from, alter content within, etc.) the overlay in some manner to create a derivative media overlay.

For example, referring again to FIGS. 5A and 5B, a first user may create an overlay sticker of the coffee cup 560 and apply the sticker to an image (taken using the digital camera of the user's computing device) of the user waking up first thing in the morning with a caption “I need coffee.” As second user may receive the image of the user with the (first) coffee cup overlay, retrieve the coffee cup overlay from the image, enlarge the coffee cup by 50%, and save it as a new (second) overlay. In some embodiments, the system may limit control of derivative overlays (such as the second overlay) to the user who created the original overlay. In other embodiments, each user who creates an overlay may control aspects of the usage of the overlay they created and any derivatives thereof.

The system may allow users to affect derivatives of their media overlays in a variety of different ways. The system may provide a user usage information regarding derivative overlays from the user's media overlay and the user may decide he/she wishes to make changes to the original overlay that will propagate to all downstream derivatives. For example, the user may provide input for usage control of the media overlay (425) that deletes an original overlay created by the user, and causing the server hosting the original overlay to delete any derivatives of the original overlay. Using the example of the derivative overlay of the coffee cup above, the first user could delete the original (smaller) coffee cup overlay and cause the server to remove the first overlay from any media content items, but also remove the second overlay from any media content items. Likewise, the user may make a modification to the original overlay that causes the modification to apply to all derivatives. For example, the first user could remove the handle of the coffee cup in the original overlay, causing the handle of the coffee cup in the second overlay to be removed as well.

In this manner, the embodiments of the present disclosure allow a user to prevent or terminate distribution of overlays based on the user's original overlay. This can be particularly useful in cases where the overlay contains a likeness of the user (e.g., of the user's face) that (perhaps unintentionally) gets distributed beyond the user's group of close friends as the user may have originally intended. In addition to blanket changes to all derivatives, embodiments of the present disclosure can also enable a user to selectively delete or modify derivative overlays individually or based on groups of overlays.

For example, a user may use the received usage information on the user's overlay to identify fifty derivative overlays that have been created by other users based on the user's overlay. The user may selectively delete three of the derivatives, selectively modify two of the derivatives, delete a group of five derivatives outside a predetermined geographical boundary (e.g., outside the United States) and allow the remaining forty derivatives to remain in use.

Software Architecture

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary software architecture 606, which may be used in conjunction with various hardware architectures herein described. FIG. 6 is a non-limiting example of a software architecture and it will be appreciated that many other architectures may be implemented to facilitate the functionality described herein. The software architecture 606 may execute on hardware such as machine 700 of FIG. 7 that includes, among other things, processors 704, memory 714, and I/O components 718. A representative hardware layer 652 is illustrated and can represent, for example, the machine 700 of FIG. 7. The representative hardware layer 652 includes a processing unit 654 having associated executable instructions 604. Executable instructions 604 represent the executable instructions of the software architecture 606, including implementation of the methods, components and so forth described herein. The hardware layer 652 also includes memory and/or storage modules memory/storage 656, which also have executable instructions 604. The hardware layer 652 may also comprise other hardware 658.

As used herein, the term “component” may refer to a device, physical entity or logic having boundaries defined by function or subroutine calls, branch points, application program interfaces (APIs), and/or other technologies that provide for the partitioning or modularization of particular processing or control functions. Components may be combined via their interfaces with other components to carry out a machine process. A component may be a packaged functional hardware unit designed for use with other components and a part of a program that usually performs a particular function of related functions.

Components may constitute either software components (e.g., code embodied on a machine-readable medium) or hardware components. A “hardware component” is a tangible unit capable of performing certain operations and may be configured or arranged in a certain physical manner. In various exemplary embodiments, one or more computer systems (e.g., a standalone computer system, a client computer system, or a server computer system) or one or more hardware components of a computer system (e.g., a processor or a group of processors) may be configured by software (e.g., art application or application portion) as a hardware component that operates to perform certain operations as described herein. A hardware component may also be implemented mechanically, electronically, or any suitable combination thereof. For example, a hardware component may include dedicated circuitry or logic that is permanently configured to perform certain operations.

A hardware component may be a special-purpose processor, such as a Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC). A hardware component may also include programmable logic or circuitry that is temporarily configured by software to perform certain operations. For example, a hardware component may include software executed by a general-purpose processor or other programmable processor. Once configured by such software, hardware components become specific machines (or specific components of a machine) uniquely tailored to perform the configured functions and are no longer general-purpose processors. It will be appreciated that the decision to implement a hardware component mechanically, in dedicated and permanently configured circuitry, or in temporarily configured circuitry (e.g., configured by software) may be driven by cost and time considerations.

A processor may be, or in include, any circuit or virtual circuit (a physical circuit emulated by logic executing on an actual processor) that manipulates data values according to control signals (e.g., “commands”, “op codes”, “machine code”, etc.) and which produces corresponding output signals that are applied to operate a machine. A processor may, for example, be a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Reduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC) processor, a Complex Instruction Set Computing (CISC) processor, a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Radio-Frequency Integrated Circuit (RFIC) or any combination thereof. A processor may further be a multi-core processor having two or more independent processors (sometimes referred to as “cores”) that may execute instructions contemporaneously.

Accordingly, the phrase “hardware component” (or “hardware-implemented component”) should be understood to encompass a tangible entity, be that an entity that is physically constructed, permanently configured (e.g., hardwired), or temporarily configured (e.g., programmed) to operate in a certain manner or to perform certain operations described herein. Considering embodiments in which hardware components are temporarily configured (e.g., programmed), each of the hardware components need not be configured or instantiated at any one instance in time. For example, where a hardware component comprises a general-purpose processor configured by software to become a special-purpose processor, the general-purpose processor may be configured as respectively different special-purpose processors (e.g., comprising different hardware components) at different times. Software accordingly configures a particular processor or processors, for example, to constitute a particular hardware component at one instance of time and to constitute a different hardware component at a different instance of time. Hardware components can provide information to, and receive information from, other hardware components. Accordingly, the described hardware components may be regarded as being communicatively coupled. Where multiple hardware components exist contemporaneously, communications may be achieved through signal transmission (e.g., over appropriate circuits and buses) between or among two or more of the hardware components. In embodiments in which multiple hardware components are configured or instantiated at different times, communications between such hardware components may be achieved, for example, through the storage and retrieval of information in memory structures to which the multiple hardware components have access.

For example, one hardware component may perform an operation and store the output of that operation in a memory device to which it is communicatively coupled. A further hardware component may then, at a later time, access the memory device to retrieve and process the stored output. Hardware components may also initiate communications with input or output devices, and can operate on a resource (e.g., a collection of information). The various operations of example methods described herein may be performed, at least partially, by one or more processors that are temporarily configured (e.g., by software) or permanently configured to perform the relevant operations. Whether temporarily or permanently configured, such processors may constitute processor-implemented components that operate to perform one or more operations or functions described herein. As used herein, “processor-implemented component” refers to a hardware component implemented using one or more processors. Similarly, the methods described herein may be at least partially processor-implemented, with a particular processor or processors being an example of hardware. For example, at least some of the operations of a method may be performed by one or more processors or processor-implemented components.

Moreover, the one or more processors may also operate to support performance of the relevant operations in a “cloud computing” environment or as a “software as a service” (SaaS). For example, at least some of the operations may be performed by a group of computers (as examples of machines including processors), with these operations being accessible via a network (e.g., the Internet) and via one or more appropriate interfaces (e.g., an Application Program Interface (API)). The performance of certain of the operations may be distributed among the processors, not only residing within a single machine, but deployed across a number of machines. In some exemplary embodiments, the processors or processor-implemented components may be located in a single geographic location (e.g., within a home environment, an office environment, or a server farm). In other exemplary embodiments, the processors or processor-implemented components may be distributed across a number of geographic locations.

In the exemplary architecture of FIG. 6, the software architecture 606 may be conceptualized as a stack of layers where each layer provides particular functionality. For example, the software architecture 606 may include layers such as an operating system 602, libraries 620, applications 616 and a presentation layer 614. Operationally, the applications 616 and/or other components within the layers may invoke application programming interface (API) API calls 608 through the software stack and receive messages 612 in response to the API calls 608. The layers illustrated are representative in nature and not all software architectures have all layers. For example, some mobile or special purpose operating systems may not provide a frameworks/middleware 618, while others may provide such a layer. Other software architectures may include additional or different layers.

The operating system 602 may manage hardware resources and provide common services. The operating system 602 may include, for example, a kernel 622, services 624 and drivers 626. The kernel 622 may act as an abstraction layer between the hardware and the other software layers. For example, the kernel 622 may be responsible for memory management, processor management (e.g., scheduling), component management, networking, security settings, and so on. The services 624 may provide other common services for the other software layers. The drivers 626 are responsible for controlling or interfacing with the underlying hardware. For instance, the drivers 626 include display drivers, camera drivers, Bluetooth® drivers, flash memory drivers, serial communication drivers (e.g., Universal Serial Bus (USB) drivers), Wi-Fi® drivers, audio drivers, power management drivers, and so forth depending on the hardware configuration.

The libraries 620 provide a common infrastructure that is used by the applications 616 and/or other components and/or layers. The libraries 620 provide functionality that allows other software components to perform tasks in an easier fashion than to interface directly with the underlying operating system 602 functionality (e.g., kernel 622, services 624 and/or drivers 626). The libraries 620 may include system libraries 644 (e.g., C standard library) that may provide functions such as memory allocation functions, string manipulation functions, mathematical functions, and the like. In addition, the libraries 620 may include API libraries 646 such as media libraries (e.g., libraries to support presentation and manipulation of various media format such as MPREG4, H.264, MP3, AAC, AMR, JPG, PNG), graphics libraries (e.g., an OpenGL framework that may be used to render 2D and 3D in a graphic content on a display), database libraries (e.g., SQLite that may provide various relational database functions), web libraries (e.g., WebKit that may provide web browsing functionality), and the like. The libraries 620 may also include a wide variety of other libraries 648 to provide many other APIs to the applications 616 and other software components/modules.

The frameworks/middleware 618 (also sometimes referred to as middleware) provide a higher-level common infrastructure that may be used by the applications 616 and/or other software components/modules. For example, the frameworks/middleware 618 may provide various graphic user interface (GUI) functions, high-level resource management, high-level location services, and so forth. The frameworks/middleware 618 may provide a broad spectrum of other APIs that may be utilized by the applications 616 and/or other software components/modules, some of which may be specific to a particular operating system 602 or platform.

The applications 616 include built-in applications 638 and/or third-party applications 640. Examples of representative built-in applications 638 may include, but are not limited to, a contacts application, a browser application, a book reader application, a location application, media application, a messaging application, and/or a game application. Third-party applications 640 may include an application developed using the ANDROID™ or IOS™ software development kit (SDK) by an entity other than the vendor of the particular platform, and may be mobile software running on a mobile operating system such as IOS™, ANDROID™, WINDOWS® Phone, or other mobile operating systems. The third-party applications 640 may invoke the API calls 608 provided by the mobile operating system (such as operating system 602) to facilitate functionality described herein.

The applications 616 may use built in operating system functions (e.g., kernel 622, services 624 and/or drivers 626), libraries 620, and frameworks/middleware 618 to create user interfaces to interact with users of the system. Alternatively, or additionally, in some systems interactions with a user may occur through a presentation layer, such as presentation layer 614. In these systems, the application/component “logic” can be separated from the aspects of the application/component that interact with a user.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating components (also referred to herein as “modules”) of a machine 700, according to some exemplary embodiments, able to read instructions from a machine-readable medium (e.g., a machine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. Specifically, FIG. 7 shows a diagrammatic representation of the machine 700 in the example form of a computer system, within which instructions 710 (e.g., software, a program, an application, an applet, an app, or other executable code) for causing the machine 700 to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein may be executed. As such, the instructions 710 may be used to implement modules or components described herein. The instructions 710 transform the general, non-programmed machine 700 into a particular machine 700 programmed to carry out the described and illustrated functions in the manner described. In alternative embodiments, the machine 700 operates as a standalone device or may be coupled (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the machine 700 may operate in the capacity of a server machine or a client machine in a server-client network environment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The machine 700 may comprise, but not be limited to, a server computer, a client computer, a personal computer (PC), a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a netbook, a set-top box (STB), a personal digital assistant (PDA), an entertainment media system, a cellular telephone, a smart phone, a mobile device, a wearable device (e.g., a smart watch), a smart home device (e.g., a smart appliance), other smart devices, a web appliance, a network router, a network switch, a network bridge, or any machine capable of executing the instructions 710, sequentially or otherwise, that specify actions to be taken by machine 700. Further, while only a single machine 700 is illustrated, the term “machine” shall also be taken to include a collection of machines that individually or jointly execute the instructions 710 to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

The machine 700 may include processors 704, memory memory/storage 706, and I/O components 718, which may be configured to communicate with each other such as via a bus 702. The memory/storage 706 may include a memory 714, such as a main memory, or other memory storage, and a storage unit 716, both accessible to the processors 704 such as via the bus 702. The storage unit 716 and memory 714 store the instructions 710 embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein. The instructions 710 may also reside, completely or partially, within the memory 714, within the storage unit 716, within at least one of the processors 704 (e.g., within the processor's cache memory), or any suitable combination thereof, during execution thereof by the machine 700. Accordingly, the memory 714, the storage unit 716, and the memory of processors 704 are examples of machine-readable media.

As used herein, the term “machine-readable medium,” “computer-readable medium,” or the like may refer to any component, device or other tangible media able to store instructions and data temporarily or permanently. Examples of such media may include, but is not limited to, random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), buffer memory, flash memory, optical media, magnetic media, cache memory, other types of storage (e.g., Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM)) and/or any suitable combination thereof. The term “machine-readable medium” should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, or associated caches and servers) able to store instructions. The term “machine-readable medium” may also be taken to include any medium, or combination of multiple media, that is capable of storing instructions (e.g., code) for execution by a machine, such that the instructions, when executed by one or more processors of the machine, cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies described herein. Accordingly, a “machine-readable medium” may refer to a single storage apparatus or device, as well as “cloud-based” storage systems or storage networks that include multiple storage apparatus or devices. The term “machine-readable medium” excludes signals per se.

The I/O components 718 may include a wide variety of components to provide a user interface for receiving input, providing output, producing output, transmitting information, exchanging information, capturing measurements, and so on. The specific I/O components 718 that are included in the user interface of a particular machine 700 will depend on the type of machine. For example, portable machines such as mobile phones will likely include a touch input device or other such input mechanisms, while a headless server machine will likely not include such a touch input device. It will be appreciated that the I/O components 718 may include many other components that are not shown in FIG. 7. The I/O components 718 are grouped according to functionality merely for simplifying the following discussion and the grouping is in no way limiting. In various exemplary embodiments, the I/O components 718 may include output components 726 and input components 728. The output components 726 may include visual components (e.g., a display such as a plasma display panel (PDP), a light emitting diode (LED) display, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a projector, or a cathode ray tube (CRT)), acoustic components (e.g., speakers), haptic components (e.g., a vibratory motor, resistance mechanisms), other signal generators, and so forth. The input components 728 may include alphanumeric input components (e.g., a keyboard, a touch screen configured to receive alphanumeric input, a photo-optical keyboard, or other alphanumeric input components), point based input components (e.g., a mouse, a touchpad, a trackball, a joystick, a motion sensor, or other pointing instrument), tactile input components (e.g., a physical button, a touch screen that provides location and/or force of touches or touch gestures, or other tactile input components), audio input components (e.g., a microphone), and the like. The input components 728 may also include one or more image-capturing devices, such as a digital camera for generating digital images and/or video.

In further exemplary embodiments, the I/O components 718 may include biometric components 730, motion components 734, environmental environment components 736, or position components 738, as well as a wide array of other components. One or more of such components portions thereof) may collectively be referred to herein as a “sensor component” or “sensor” for collecting various data related to the machine 700, the environment of the machine 700, a user of the machine 700, or a combinations thereof.

For example, the biometric components 730 may include components to detect expressions (e.g., hand expressions, facial expressions, vocal expressions, body gestures, or eye tracking), measure biosignals (e.g., blood pressure, heart rate, body temperature, perspiration, or brain waves), identify a person (e.g., voice identification, retinal identification, facial identification, fingerprint identification, or electroencephalogram based identification), and the like. The motion components 734 may include acceleration sensor components (e.g., accelerometer), gravitation sensor components, velocity sensor components (e.g., speedometer), rotation sensor components (e.g., gyroscope), and so forth. The environment components 736 may include, for example, illumination sensor components (e.g., photometer), temperature sensor components (e.g., one or more thermometer that detect ambient temperature), humidity sensor components, pressure sensor components (e.g., barometer), acoustic sensor components (e.g., one or more microphones that detect background noise), proximity sensor components (e.g., infrared sensors that detect nearby objects), gas sensors (e.g., gas detection sensors to detection concentrations of hazardous gases for safety or to measure pollutants in the atmosphere), or other components that may provide indications, measurements, or signals corresponding to a surrounding physical environment. The position components 738 may include location sensor components (e.g., a Global Position system (GPS) receiver component), altitude sensor components (e.g., altimeters or barometers that detect air pressure from which altitude may be derived), orientation sensor components (e.g., magnetometers), and the like. For example, the location sensor component may provide location information associated with the system 700, such as the system's 700 GPS coordinates and/or information regarding a location the system 700 is at currently (e.g., the name of a restaurant or other business).

Communication may be implemented using a wide variety of technologies. The I/O components 718 may include communication components 740 operable to couple the machine 700 to a network 732 or devices 720 via coupling 722 and coupling 724 respectively. For example, the communication components 740 may include a network interface component or other suitable device to interface with the network 732. In further examples, communication components 740 may include wired communication components, wireless communication components, cellular communication components, Near Field Communication (NFC) components, Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components, and other communication components to provide communication via other modalities. The devices 720 may be another machine or any of a wide variety of peripheral devices (e.g., a peripheral device coupled via a Universal Serial Bus (USB)).

Moreover, the communication components 740 may detect identifiers or include components operable to detect identifiers. For example, the communication components 740 may include Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag reader components, NFC smart tag detection components, optical reader components (e.g., an optical sensor to detect one-dimensional bar codes such as Universal Product Code (UPC) bar code, multi-dimensional bar codes such as Quick Response (QR) code, Aztec code, Data Matrix, Dataglyph, MaxiCode, PDF417, Ultra Code, UCC RSS-2D bar code, and other optical codes), or acoustic detection components (e.g., microphones to identify tagged audio signals). In addition, a variety of information may be derived via the communication components 740, such as, location via Internet Protocol (IP) geo-location, location via Wi-Fi® signal triangulation, location via detecting a NFC beacon signal that may indicate a particular location, and so forth.

Where a phrase similar to “at least one of A, B, or C,” “at least one of A, B, and C,” “one or more A, B, or C,” or “one or more of A, B, and C” is used, it is intended that the phrase be interpreted to mean that A alone may be present in an embodiment, B alone may be present in an embodiment, C alone may be present in an embodiment, or that any combination of the elements A, B and C may be present in a single embodiment; for example, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C.

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is subject copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. The following notice applies to the software and data as described below and in the drawings that form a part of this document: Copyright 2016, SNAPCHAT, INC. 2016, All Rights Reserved.

Changes and modifications may be made to the disclosed embodiments without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. These and other changes or modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present disclosure, as expressed in the following claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: a processor; a user interface coupled to the processor, the user interface comprising an input device and a display screen; and memory coupled to the processor and storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the system to perform operations comprising: causing an image to be displayed on the display screen of the user interface; receiving input, via the input device of the user interface, from a user of the system selecting an object within the image; generating a media overlay containing the selected object; transmitting the media overlay to a server; receiving input from the user via the input device of the user interface for controlling usage of the media overlay; and in response to the input from the user for controlling usage of the media overlay, transmitting instructions for controlling usage of the media overlay by other computing devices to the server.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory further stores instructions for causing the system to perform operations comprising: receiving, from the server, a uniform resource locator link to the media overlay.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein the memory further stores instructions for causing the system to perform operations comprising: receiving input from the user via the input device of the user interface for sharing the uniform resource locator to the media overlay with a computing device of a second user; and in response to receiving the input for sharing the uniform resource locator to the media overlay, transmitting an electronic communication containing the uniform resource locator to the computing device of the second user.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein the system includes a token in the electronic communication that limits access to the uniform resource locator to the computing device of the second user and prevents access to the uniform resource locator by other computing devices.
 5. The system of claim 3, wherein the uniform resource locator is accessible by other computing devices receiving the electronic communication receiving the electronic communication from the computing device of the second user.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein generating the media overlay includes generating a geolocation field in a data structure for the media overlay that includes location information received from a location sensor coupled to the system.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein generating the media overlay includes generating a name field in a data structure for the media overlay that includes a name for the overlay received from the user via the input device of the user interface.
 8. The system of claim 7, wherein the system prevents the user from modifying the name field in the data structure for the media overlay after the media overlay is transmitted to the server.
 9. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory further stores instructions for causing the system to perform operations comprising: receiving, from the server, a second image having a second media overly applied to the second image; and causing the second image to be displayed on the display screen of the user interface.
 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the memory further stores instructions for causing the system to perform operations comprising: retrieving the second media overlay applied to the second image in response to selection of the second media overlay by the user via the input device of the user interface; and applying the second media overlay to a third image displayed on the display screen of the user interface.
 11. The system of claim 9, wherein causing the second image to be displayed includes causing a name associated with the second media overlay and an identifier associated with a user who created the second media overlay to be displayed.
 12. The system of claim 9, wherein the second image has a plurality of media overlays applied to the second image and wherein the memory further stores instructions for causing the system to perform operations comprising: retrieving one or more random media overlays from the plurality of media overlays applied to the second image.
 13. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory further stores instructions for causing the system to perform operations comprising: receiving, from the server, information on usage of the media overlay by one or more other users via a respective one or more other computing devices; and causing the information to be displayed on the usage of the media overlay on the display screen of the user interface.
 14. The system of claim 13, wherein the usage information includes one or more of: a number of views of the media overlay, a number of applications of the media overlay, and information regarding derivative media overlays created based on the media overlay.
 15. The system of claim 14, wherein the usage information includes information regarding derivative media overlays and wherein the input from the user for controlling usage of the media overlay includes deleting the media overlay by the user to cause the server to delete the derivative media overlays.
 16. The system of claim 14, wherein the usage information includes information regarding derivative media overlays and wherein the input from the user for controlling usage of the media overlay includes performing a modification to the media overlay by the user to cause the server to perform the modification to the derivative media overlays.
 17. The system of claim 14, wherein the usage information includes information regarding derivative media overlays and wherein the input from the user for controlling usage of the media overlay includes input for selectively deleting or modifying one or more derivative overlays from a plurality of derivative media overlays.
 18. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions for controlling usage of the overlay includes instructions for controlling distribution of the overlay according to one or more of: a whitelist, a blacklist, and a geographical location.
 19. A computer-implemented method comprising: causing, by a computer system, an image to be displayed on a display screen of a user interface coupled to the computing device; receiving, by the computer system, input from a user of the computer system via an input device of the user interface selecting an object within the image; generating, by the computer system, a media overlay containing the selected object; transmitting, by the computer system, the media overlay to a server; receiving, by the computer system, input from the user via the input device of the user interface for controlling usage of the media overlay; and in response to the input from the user for controlling usage of the media overlay, transmitting, by the computer system, instructions for controlling usage of the media overlay by other computing devices to the server.
 20. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a computer system, cause the computer system to perform operations comprising: causing an image to be displayed on a display screen of a user interface coupled to the computer system; receiving input, via an input device of the user interface, from a user of the system selecting an object within the image; generating a media overlay containing the selected object; transmitting the media overlay to a server; receiving input from the user via the input device of the user interface for controlling usage of the media overlay; and in response to the input from the user for controlling usage of the media overlay, transmitting instructions for controlling usage of the media overlay by other computing devices to the server. 